2024 Columbia University pro-Palestinian campus occupation

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2024 Columbia University pro-Palestinian campus occupation
Part of the April 2024 Israel–Hamas war protests on United States university campuses and student activism at Columbia University
A group of pro-Palestinian protesters outside Columbia University in April 2024
DateApril 17, 2024 – present
(3 weeks and 1 day)
Location
New York City, New York, United States
Caused by
Goals
Methods
Parties

Pro-Palestinian groups:

Casualties
Arrested113 protesters

An ongoing occupation protest involving pro-Palestinian students is occuring at Columbia University in New York City.

The protests began on April 17, 2024, when pro-Palestinian students established an encampment of approximately 50 tents, calling it the Gaza Solidarity Encampment,[1][2] on the university's campus, demanding the university divest from Israel. The encampment was initially forcibly dismantled the next day when university president Nemat Shafik authorized the New York City Police Department to storm campus and conduct mass arrests, but it has since been restored.[2][3] The arrests marked the first time the university has allowed police to suppress campus protests since the 1968 demonstrations against the Vietnam War.[4]

The campus occupation has been organized by Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD), a student-led coalition of over 120 groups,[5] together with Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), which have often participated in New York City's pro-Palestinian demonstrations since the start of the ongoing Israel–Hamas war in October 2023.[6] Another local group, Within Our Lifetime (WOL), has been protesting outside around the campus perimeter in support of the encampment, clashing with the NYPD.[7][8][9] Much smaller groups of pro-Israel counterprotesters have also been present outside the university.[4]

As a result of the protests, Columbia University switched to blended learning for the rest of the semester.[10] The protests encouraged other actions at New York University and Yale University.

Background

Israel–Hamas war demonstrations at Columbia University

A vigil for Israel at Columbia University in October 2023.
Further information: Israel–Hamas war protests in the United States and Student activism at Columbia University

Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel students have staged demonstrations at Columbia University during the Israel–Hamas war.[11] On October 12, 2023, days after the war began, the university closed its campus after opposing demonstrations collided.[12] In November 2023, Columbia University administrations suspended SJP and JVP after they held an unauthorized student walkout, furthering conflicts between faculty and administration; the university claimed that one person at the event shouted anti-Semitic epithets.[13] That same month, students walked out of a class taught by Hillary Clinton in support of Palestine after her comments against a ceasefire.[14]

In January 2024, students at a pro-Palestinian demonstration on campus were attacked with Skunk, a foul-smelling spray usually used as crowd control by the Israel Defense Forces, causing various injuries.[15] In response, demonstrators organized a protest outside the university.[16] The incident is currently being investigated by the New York City Police Department as a potential hate crime.[17] SJP and JVP published a report in which they stated the perpetrators were former IDF soldiers and current Columbia students.[15]

Nemat Shafik's testimony

Columbia University president Nemat Shafik testified before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce on April 17, 2024;[18] opposition to Shafik by students mounted.[19]

Timeline

April 17

On April 17, beginning around 4 AM,[20] approximately seventy protesters sat in tents bearing the Palestinian flag on the East Butler Lawn.[21] Protesters put up banners reading "Gaza Solidarity Encampment" and "Liberated Zone".[2] A substantial NYPD presence was noted outside the university as soon as the encampment had been established.[9] Activity in the encampment included a teach-in and film screening.[2]

April 18

The following day, the Shafik authorized[22] New York City Police Department Strategic Response Group[23] entered the encampment to arrest protesters[24] as Columbia University employees cleared the tents.[25] CUAD stated that the university had dumped students' confiscated belongings in a nearby alley.[20] Three students were suspended, including Isra Hirsi, the daughter of representative Ilhan Omar.[26] After the New York Police Department appeared, a group of pro-Israel counter-protesters congregated to celebrate the university's response, waving American and Israeli flags.[27] A protest on 114th Street and Amsterdam Avenue formed, but dispersed to allow buses with detained protesters to exit.[28]

Despite the dismantlement of the initial encampment, it was soon reported that protesters had moved to an adjacent lawn on campus, where they rehoisted their banners and repitched several tents.[2][29] Hundreds of students began forming a picket on the West Lawn of the Butler Lawns.[30] Public intellectual and independent presidential candidate Cornel West appeared to show solidarity.[31] A group protested outside of the university's main entrance on 116th Street.[32] Protesters on 116th Street and Broadway moved towards 120th Street after a man was taken into custody.[33]

All of the protesters arrested by the NYPD were released by late evening.[34]

April 19

Protesters remained camped out on campus; SJP chapters at the University of North Carolina, Boston University, and Ohio State University, as well as the Harvard College Palestine Solidarity Committee at Harvard University, announced rallies in solidarity with the Columbia protesters.[35] Norman Finkelstein, an anti-Zionist political scientist and activist, appeared to give a speech to protesters.[34] Muslim and Jewish prayer services were held at the encampment in the afternoon and evening, respectively.[34]

April 20

The university informed the released student protesters arrested on April 18 that they would be suspended for an indefinite period of time.[36]

April 21

Elie Buechler, a rabbi associated with Columbia University’s Orthodox Union Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus recommended that Jewish students “return home as soon as possible and remain home”, arguing that the ongoing campus occupation had "made it clear that Columbia University’s Public Safety and the NYPD cannot guarantee Jewish students’ safety".[37][38]

April 22

Hundreds of faculty members at Columbia walked out of classes to protest the University's response to the protest.[39] Because of the protest, the university canceled classes on Monday, April 22.[40][41]

Other protests

In solidarity to Columbia University's occupation, students from other universities across the United States have been setting up similar encampments. As of April, 22, protest camps were set up in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the Tufts University and the Emerson College.[42] Encampments were also set up at the University of Michigan, New York University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Yale University.[43]

Yale University

Students at Yale also setup an encampment where dozens of pro-Palestinian protestors were arrested on April 22 on charges of trespassing.[43][44] Yale administrators claimed that arrests were because students failed to leave after a warning that the protest posed "a safety violation".[45]

Responses

Representative Jerrold Nadler, an alumnus of Columbia University and the House of Representatives's longest-serving Jewish member, wrote that "Columbia has an obligation to protect students and their learning environment".[46]

New York City mayor Eric Adams commented, “Students have a right to free speech, but do not have a right to violate university policies and disrupt learning on campus”.[47]

President Joe Biden referenced the protests in his statement on Passover, stating that "harassment and calls for violence against Jews ... has absolutely no place on college campuses". A separate White House statement condemned "physical intimidation targeting Jewish students and the Jewish community" on Columbia's campus.[48]

Columbia Law School professors condemned the mass arrests as well as the suspensions of students in a letter[49] to the University's leadership, calling the actions taken by Columbia's Administration "concerning" and that they "lack transparency."[50]

Columbia University alum and former trustee Robert Kraft, who founded Columbia's Kraft Center for Jewish Student Life published a statement on Instagram "I am no longer confident that Columbia can protect its students and staff and I am not comfortable supporting the university until corrective action is taken."[51]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 2024 Columbia University pro-Palestinian campus occupation.

References

  1. ^ Goldstein, Judy. "In Focus: The first 24 hours of the 'Gaza Solidarity Encampment'". Columbia Daily Spectator. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e Otterman, Sharon (April 18, 2024). "Columbia Sends In the N.Y.P.D. to Arrest Protesters in Tent City". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  3. ^ Otterman, Sharon; Blinder, Alan (April 18, 2024). "Over 100 Arrested at Columbia After Pro-Palestinian Protest". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Pro-Palestinian Columbia Student Protests Continue After Arrests". TIME. April 19, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  5. ^ Prokupecz, Shimon; Tucker, Emma; Miller, John; Elassar, Alaa; Towfighi, John (April 18, 2024). "Over 100 people arrested as NYPD breaks up pro-Palestinian protest at Columbia University, law enforcement source says". CNN. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  6. ^ Barkan, Ross (February 7, 2024). "How the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Drove a Wedge Into the Democratic Party". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  7. ^ "Columbia University Closes Campus as Hundreds of Anti-Israel Student Protesters Occupy Quad". National Review. April 17, 2024. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  8. ^ Banerjee, Isha. "Protests outside Columbia gates in solidarity with arrested students draw hundreds". Columbia Daily Spectator. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  9. ^ a b Chakravarthy, Apurva. "NYPD arrests three pro-Palestinian protesters at 'Flood Columbia for Gaza' demonstration on 116th Street and Broadway". Columbia Daily Spectator. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  10. ^ Egan, Matt; Boyette, Chris; Prokupecz, Shimon; Anderson, Nic F. (April 22, 2024). "Columbia University main campus classes will be hybrid until semester ends; NYU students, faculty arrested during protests". CNN. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  11. ^ Svrluga, Susan (April 16, 2024). "At Columbia, Israel-Gaza tensions simmer as leaders face House hearing". Washington Post. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  12. ^ Stack, Liam (October 12, 2023). "Columbia Closes Campus as Israel-Hamas War Protests Erupt". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  13. ^ Marantz, Andrew (December 2, 2023). "Columbia Suspended Pro-Palestine Student Groups. The Faculty Revolted". The New Yorker. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  14. ^ Luscombe, Richard (November 2, 2023). "Students walk out of Hillary Clinton's class to protest Columbia 'shaming' pro-Palestinian demonstrators". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
  15. ^ a b "'Negligence': Columbia students furious at university after skunk water doused on protesters". Middle East Eye. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  16. ^ Tress, Luke (February 2, 2024). "Thousands of activists gather outside Columbia U to protest treatment of campus pro-Palestinian groups". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved March 11, 2024.
  17. ^ Khalifeh, Ramsey (January 23, 2024). "NYPD investigating claims that pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia were hit with 'skunk spray'". Gothamist. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  18. ^ Blinder, Alan (April 17, 2024). "4 Takeaways From the Hearing on Antisemitism at Columbia University". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  19. ^ Bensimon, Olivia (April 18, 2024). "A truck just drove past the protest on Amsterdam Avenue". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  20. ^ a b Walton, Lara-Nour (April 19, 2024). "Inside the Gaza Solidarity Encampment at Columbia University". ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  21. ^ Otterman, Sharon (April 18, 2024). "The students inside the encampment are sitting in rows, their arms linked". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  22. ^ Saul, Stephanie (April 18, 2024). "A statement from the president of Columbia University". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  23. ^ Otterman, Sharon (April 18, 2024). "Police officers are from the Strategic Response Group". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  24. ^ Otterman, Sharon (April 18, 2024). "Columbia employees are starting to clear the tents". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  25. ^ Otterman, Sharon (April 18, 2024). "A small group of Jewish counterprotesters are celebrating the crackdown". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  26. ^ Otterman, Sharon; Betts, Anna (April 18, 2024). "Ilhan Omar's daughter is suspended for her involvement in the Columbia protests". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  27. ^ Otterman, Sharon (April 18, 2024). "A small group of Jewish counterprotesters are celebrating the crackdown". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  28. ^ Bensimon, Olivia (April 18, 2024). "The protest on 114th and Amsterdam is dispersing after an organizer instructed attendees to clear the roadway". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  29. ^ Sanford, Karla. "Pro-Palestinian demonstrators repitched a couple of tents, and seemed to have recovered the main signage from the encampment as well". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  30. ^ Otterman, Sharon (April 18, 2024). "Hundreds of students have formed a new impromptu protest around the campus lawn just west of the encampment". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  31. ^ Sanford, Karla (April 18, 2024). "Cornel West, a left-wing public intellectual and independent candidate for president, is addressing the student protesters". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  32. ^ Sanford, Karla (April 18, 2024). "Police officers are still standing in the eastern yard". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  33. ^ Bensimon, Olivia. "The protesters who had been fenced into an area on Broadway and 116th Street broke out of their pen and onto the roadway after police officers took a man into custody". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  34. ^ a b c Huddleston, Sarah. "'Gaza Solidarity Encampment' enters day four as Columbia kicks off admitted students weekend". Columbia Daily Spectator. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  35. ^ Faheid, Dalia; Alvarado, Caroll; Towfighi, John (April 19, 2024). "Students at more universities announce solidarity rallies after 108 pro-Palestinian activists are arrested at Columbia". CNN. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  36. ^ Closson, Troy; Betts, Anna (April 20, 2024). "Columbia Students Arrested Over Campus Rally May Face Other Consequences". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  37. ^ Tebor, Celina; Sottile, Zoe (April 21, 2024). "Rabbi associated with Columbia University recommends Jewish students 'return home' amid tense protests on campus". CNN. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  38. ^ Kornbluh, Jacob (April 21, 2024). "Orthodox group at Columbia advises Jewish students to leave campus amid anti-war protests". The Forward. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  39. ^ Oladipo, Gloria (April 22, 2024). "Columbia faculty members walk out after pro-Palestinian protesters arrested". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  40. ^ Belikn, Douglas; Lukpat, Alyssa (April 22, 2024). "Columbia Cancels In-Person Classes Amid Pro-Palestinian Protests". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  41. ^ Ferré-Sadurní, Luis; Edmonds, Colbi; Cruz, Liset (April 22, 2024). "Jewish Students Are Targeted as Protests Continue at Columbia". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  42. ^ Moller, Louisa (April 22, 2024). "MIT, Emerson College, Tufts students start pro-Palestinian camps inspired by Columbia University protests - CBS Boston". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  43. ^ a b "Columbia cancels in-person classes as pro-Palestinian protests sprout across U.S. campuses". PBS NewsHour. April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  44. ^ "Yale students arrested at protest over university investment in arms manufacturers. 'It was very brutal'". Hartford Courant. April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  45. ^ News, The Yale Daily (April 22, 2024). "Salovey addresses student arrests, threatens disciplinary action". Yale Daily News. Retrieved April 23, 2024. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  46. ^ Fandos, Nicholas (April 18, 2024). "Columbia got backup on Thursday afternoon from one of its most prominent alumni: Representative Jerrold Nadler, Democrat of New York". The New York Times. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  47. ^ "Police arrest dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia, including congresswoman's daughter". AP News. April 18, 2024. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  48. ^ Garrity, Kelly (April 21, 2024). "'Antisemitic, unconscionable, and dangerous': White House responds to chaos at Columbia". Politico.
  49. ^ "DocumentCloud". www.documentcloud.org. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  50. ^ Thakker, Prem (April 22, 2024). "Columbia Law School Faculty Condemn Administration for Mass Arrests and Suspensions". The Intercept. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  51. ^ Palumbo, Alysha (April 22, 2024). "Boston schools join Gaza war campus protest; Kraft speaks out against Columbia". nbaboston. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
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